Rural Mountain road
Terri Webster Schrandt

Sunday Stills: Views from the #Road, All 3400 Miles

If you’ve been keeping up with my posts, you’ll notice I’m unfurling our 3-week road trip a bit at a time. I could have easily retitled my post How To Successfully Stay in Motels with a Dog While on a Long Road Trip and Still See Stunning Scenery…

Today’s Sunday Stills theme is “roads, paths, and streets.” I share more about our road trip through a photo journal format and our perspectives on the accommodations in which we stayed. Enjoy the images.

“Still, round the corner, there may wait, A new road or a secret gate.” – J. R. R. Tolkien

Southern California super bloom
Southern California super bloom

What’s Been on My Calendar?

I’m sharing details of our road trip for this monthly feature. Each day, most drive times ranged from 5-9 hours. We stayed a whole week in San Diego, which was the main reason to take the trip. I learned from a family member that staying at least two nights in a location enabled us to spend a whole day exploring the area. A good idea for us and highly recommended if you have the time. In fact, Slow Travel is becoming popular, according to this article from the AARP website (which interestingly popped up in the AARP app), while I was composing this post. Glad to know I’m on trend!

Many thanks to Debbie, Sue, and Jo for hosting WBOMC.

Ways to Take to the Road

Many of our road trips involve pulling our 28-ft travel trailer with my hubby’s truck. We simply choose some dates, secure camping spot(s), make some plans to visit any new places we haven’t seen yet, park the trailer and drive to various points of interest, then come back to our lovely home on wheels. Easy-peasy! And a component of the Slow Travel trend.

When traveling with fur babies, our dogs love the trailer since it feels and smells like home to them. Little Aero spent countless weekends in our various trailers and always felt comfortable, even if we left him there alone for a few hours to do something that wasn’t dog friendly. We added Brodie, our Boykin Spaniel, to the travel mix in 2017 with weekend trips to the Sacramento delta and he got comfortable quickly.

Aero resting in RV
Aero loved resting in the RV

With Aero gone now, we have only Brodie who travels well in the car or truck. We discovered in 2019, when we were traveling back and forth from Sacramento to Spokane and staying in hotels, that Brodie cannot handle being in hotel rooms with interior doors that open to a common hallway. He barked, howled, scratched, etc., and kept us up all night. We nearly got asked to leave, and we learned our lesson quickly.

When this road trip began to shape up, built around my daughter’s wedding on April 1, we opted not to pull the trailer this time due to lingering winter conditions over several mountain passes. We chose to drive my Ford Flex with its brand-new all-weather tires and plenty of room! The mileage from Nine Mile Falls, Washington to San Diego, California is 1500 miles!

“Look at life through the windshield, not the rearview mirror.” — Byrd Baggett

The Search for Accommodations

I researched accommodations that were not only pet friendly but had the exterior door to the parking lot (think motel or cabin), a dog park area, and a free breakfast bar. Not that I’m advertising, but Best Western Hotels and Resorts fit these parameters quite nicely and were available in almost every city we stayed. Whether you choose this chain or not, it’s great to become a rewards member for perks and use their website to book your stays. We discovered other motels that were affiliated with Best Westerns as a “Sure Stay” or a “Best Western Plus.”

Note that pet-friendly hotels charge $10-30 a day for a “pet deposit,” and most are non-refundable. Cheaper than doggy day care plus our dog can be with us.

MARCH 26 DAY 1: ROAD TRIP BEGINS

We chose to drive a highway route in Eastern Washington toward the Boise, Idaho area. We drove through Hells Canyon, Idaho which was covered in snow but beautiful. I scheduled one overnight stay at Motel 6 in Ontario, Oregon, no frills, no breakfast—and we lost an hour to Mountain Standard Time. I read Hells Canyon is the deepest canyon in America!

Road Through Hells Canyon, Idaho

“According to the map, we’ve only gone four inches.” – Dumb & Dumber

MARCH 27 DAY 2: DRIVING THROUGH UTAH

Leaving Idaho, our 8-hour drive took us through Salt Lake City, Utah, just hours on the heels of a huge winter storm. I-15 northbound was closed for miles due to overturned semis and poor weather.

snowy road to Salt Lake City
On the Road to Salt Lake City

Luckily we were southbound.

Salt Lake City
Driving through Salt Lake City

“You may not find a path, but you will find a way.” – Tom Wolfe

Welcome sign for Beaver, Utah

I scheduled one overnight stay in Beaver, Utah at a Best Western motel. Excellent customer service and a wonderful breakfast bar. Beaver was a cute little town in southern Utah, rural like ours, and such friendly people.

Mar 28 – April 4 Day 3: Arrival in San Diego, CA, 1500 miles total

After 9 hours of driving—we got our hour back. We stayed at Lamplighter Inns and Suites in San Diego for 7 nights. It was dog-friendly and close to my daughter’s home. We scored an upgraded suite at no charge and enjoyed their awesome breakfast bar. It was very quiet, even near a main street in the San Diego State University area of town. A little pricey but the free upgrade and peace of mind were worth it.

Just a few days before the wedding we visited Mt Helix.

Spiral road around San Diego's Mt Helix
The spiral road around San Diego’s Mt Helix

Another look at the wedding. As the mother of the bride, I enjoyed a short walk on the path from the parking lot to the wedding venue.

Mother of the bride walking path

My son-in-law loves his bikes. They brought one to the wedding for some special photo ops. And yes, Lauren’s leather jacket says “Til Death.” Irony or commitment?

Bride and Groom Til Death

“I take to the open road, healthy, free, the world before me.” – Walt Whitman

Colorful Cliffs mark Colorado Plateau at Arizona/Utah border

April 4-7 Day 10: To Scottsdale, Arizona

We stayed with Marsha in their Airbnb condo in Scottsdale, Arizona. Excellent accommodations and service 😊 More about that trip here.

The road through Arizona/Utah border, near Lake Powell.

April 7-9 Day 13: Easter weekend in Bryce Canyon

We drove from Arizona back to Southern Utah (Bryce Canyon) to stay at Best Western Ruby’s Inn. A busy place due to the “holiday.” There was free breakfast, but you had to go into the restaurant for the breakfast buffet and sit down. The food was OK. Our accommodations were subpar—we found wet carpet next to our bed near the wall by the bathroom. Melting snow constantly dripped off the roof walking into the room. We opted to stay in the room for the two nights because I wasn’t about to move again, but we received a good discount.

More about Bryce Canyon here.

Tunnel Entrance into Bryce Canyon

April 9-11 Day 15: Logan, northern Utah near the Idaho border

We stayed at the Baugh Motel, a Sure Stay affiliate of Best Western. There was an excellent breakfast bar and we felt like we had the entire 75-room motel to ourselves. You can see my lonely red car parked.

Baugh Motel, Logan, Utah

Did I mention my dog Brodie loves road trips? He was exceptionally good and received many compliments from people.

“Dogs love road trips because they get to spend all day in the car with their favorite person.” ~ Unknown

Happy Hans and Brodie in Logan, Utah

Logan is home to Utah State University and is a cool little college town, about 80 miles north of Salt Lake City. Part of the reason we stayed there was to drive back to Salt Lake City and see some sights. I just love how the huge, snow-covered mountains to the east created such gorgeous backdrops to the City centers.

LDS Temple near Salt Lake City
LDS Temple near Salt Lake City
Road to Utah's State Capital
Road to Utah’s State Capital

I will share more scenes from our visit to Salt Lake City, on May 7th (the Sunday Stills theme is Temples, Churches, and Spiritual Centers).

“Road trips are the equivalent of human wings. Ask me to go on one, anywhere. We’ll stop in every small town and learn the history and stories, feel the ground and capture the spirit. Then, we’ll turn it into our own story that will live inside our history to carry with us always. Because stories are more important than things.” — Victoria Erickson

When we left Logan to travel north to Montana, we drove through Idaho Falls then veered East on Hwy 20 where we could see the Grand Teton Mountain Range in Wyoming from the viewpoint in Rexburg, Idaho. The viewpoint was about 70 miles from the mountain range as the crow flies, affording us a spectacular view.

View of Grand Tetons from Rexburg, Idaho
View of Grand Tetons from Rexburg, Idaho

April 11-13 Day 17 Big Sky Country, Montana

Continuing north on Hwy 20 we got close to the West Yellowstone turnoff, but all roads were closed, due to, you guessed it…snow. We continued north on Hwy 287 which brought us to Helena, Montana.

Big Sky Country Central Montana
Big Sky Country Central Montana

We stayed at the Lamplighter Cabins and Suites, independently owned and in the heart of Helena, Montana’s state capital. Our cabin was small, with tiny, awkward floor space, no breakfast, but dog friendly. Lots of restaurants within walking distance. With a Winter storm warning coming in mere hours, we spent a drizzly day in downtown where we also visited the state capitol building and the huge Catholic church.

Montana became the 41st state to be admitted to the US in 1889. The capitol building was completed in 1902.

Helena, Montana's State Capitol Building

We had wanted to stay closer to Bozeman, where the TV series “Yellowstone” is filmed but the accommodations were very expensive! I also wanted a shorter drive home since Helena is less than a six-hour drive.

Day 18, April 13 Homeward Bound

Winter weather caught up with us as we packed the car and left Helena. We followed the snow plow for the first 40 miles on Hwy 12, then drove I-90 through Central Montana, the Idaho panhandle to Spokane, then the few miles north to Nine Mile Falls.

Homebound behind the snowplow through Central Montana
Homebound behind the snowplow through Central Montana

The check tire pressure light came on after the “escort,” so we pulled in for gas and air fill-up. With snow and mud coating the tires, we figured the sudden cold temps caused the tires to lose a bit of air. Once home, turned out we picked up a nail between the treads of the driver’s side front tire!

“Because the greatest part of a road trip isn’t arriving at your destination. It’s all the wild stuff that happens along the way.” — Emma Chase

As much as I enjoyed our three-week road trip and all the milestone events and sights, I could have kissed the ground of our backyard when we arrived home. Even with spring’s slow start, I spied an emerging arrowleaf sunflower and new growth on our baby western larch trees, ensuring spring is finally here!

Arrowleaf Balsamroot wild sunflower
Arrowleaf sunflower flower emerges
Budding Western Larch
Budding Western Larch

Trip mileage driving from San Diego back home was 1900 miles, with a total tally of 3400 miles driven round trip.

Worth. Every. Mile.

Photo Challenges I’m Inspired By this Week

Each week I find inspiration from my fellow bloggers’ photography and other creative challenges. I enjoy incorporating these into my Sunday Stills weekly themes.

View from the Centennial Trail
View from the Centennial Trail April 29, Last on the Card

“Does the walker choose the path, or the path the walker?” ― Garth Nix, Sabriel.

Sunday Stills Photo Challenge Reminders

The Sunday Stills weekly-themed photo challenge is easy to join. You have all week to share and link your post.

  • Remember to title your blog post a little differently than mine.
  • Please create a new post for the theme or link a recent one.
  • Entries for this theme can be posted all week.
  • Tag your post “Sunday Stills.”
  • Don’t forget to create a pingback to this post so that other participants can read your post.
  • I also recommend adding your post’s URL to the comments.

This Week’s Featured Bloggers

Sunday Stills is a wonderful community of bloggers and photographers who desire to connect with one another. Below are this week’s links from bloggers who shared their photos of views from or on the road, path, or street. I add these all week as new links are posted. I also add links to posts I read that fit the theme.

Themes for the month of May are ready to view on my Sunday Stills Photo Challenge Page. This page is updated monthly.

New here? Subscribe to Second Wind Leisure Perspectives to receive my weekly posts.

Thank you for traveling all 3400 miles with us on this long, slightly strange trip. I’m excited to see what your photos from the road, street, or path look like! Have a wonderful week!

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145 comments

  2. You have more courage than I, a road trip of this magnitude in winter is more than I would like to do. That those snow-covered mountains around Salt Lake City are my favorite photos in your collection.

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    • Thank you, John 🙂 We hoped winter was mostly over but Ms La Nina had other plans. It was a pleasure to see SLC for the first time with the snowy peaks surrounding us. Most roads were in great shape, but we were not used to driving in the hurry-up-pushy traffic in the big urban centers.

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  7. You definitely saw some beautiful sights during your 3-week road trip. I sure don’t miss those snowy and icy roads. Sounds like a very successful trip and you’re probably already thinking about the next one.

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    • Thank you, Ingrid! Seeing you and my fellow bloggers was so much fun! It was a great trip and we were pleased with the time frame and amazing sights. We’re loosely planning two “short” RV trips–one to the Columbia River Gorge so Hans can windsurf (June) and a stay in Glacier NP in summer.

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  8. I was just telling my husband about this post and “slow travel.” I love that idea! A great trip, Terri. It cracked me up how you started in snow and ended in snow, with T-shirts in the middle. And I love the photo on the motorcycle. That could be in a magazine! A fun post, my friend. Happy Slow Travels!

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    • Thank you, Tina…I didn’t know there was a thing as slow travel but it makes sense. The AARP article was good! Yes, whiplash weather followed us everywhere, but we managed to miss the craziness in Salt Lake. The pic of my daughter and hubby on the motorcycle was the photographer’s–I had to include it!

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  9. Soon as I started reading the description of the hotel that would suit you i thought, “Best Western”. I’ve stayed in many of them. Most of them are clean and reasonably priced, and have at least a fridge, and usually a microwave too, things high in my list when looking for accommodations for myself.
    Great pics, but I can see why you were so glad to see signs of spring when you got home!

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  10. So many miles in three weeks, Terri. The scenery is spectacular. Mountains are majestic to look at but not fun to drive mountain passes in winter conditions. Thank you for sharing your road trip with us.

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    • My car is newish with low mileage and it really drove well, thank goodness for the robust tires! We have driven enough times over the Sierra Nevada passes and the Hwy 5 route through Mt Shasta and into Bend Oregon on the 97 which tend to be snowy, especially this past winter. Thanks, Natalie!

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  12. Terri, congratulations on your daughter’s wedding! And congratulations for making the trip despite the winter conditions. You saw a lot and made a lot of memories. After making several long trips towing our fifth wheel we decided to go with the 3-3-3 rule whenever possible. Stay 3 nights in each place, travel less than 300 miles each travel day, and stop by 3:00. I hope you enjoy many more road trips!

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  16. Wow – an impressive trip filled with so many majestic views! So nice to see the photo of Aero being so happy and content. It’s great that Brodie loves to travel in the car for that many days and miles. I would be like you so grateful to be home after the long and exciting trip. Sorry to hear about the nail in the tire in the snowstorm! UGH.
    I’m happy to see your signs of spring. PS – I hope the marital bliss is still going strong for your lovely daughter and her hubby! 😍🥰😊

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    • Thank you, Shelley, I feel we hit the jackpot with so many gorgeous views of scenery and view from the road. My daughter seems happy at this point although she is in the running for a big promotion–why does everything come in batches (good and bad)? Aero really loved our trailer and spent his entire 12 yr life enjoying it with us. I miss that little stinker but Brodie is a wonderful dog and fortunately loves being with us no matter where we go 🙂

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      • I think you’re right about hitting the jackpot of gorgeous views!
        Isn’t that how life works – highs and lows and collisions of both. I wish the couple well as they carry on with the journey of marriage!
        Aw…Aero was so lucky to have 12 years of adventures. That’s so wonderful that Brodie enjoys the car so you could take him along on the adventure. Did he like the wedding? 😉

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  19. Very eventful three weeks and wonderful in many ways! I love the smokestack in the little travel trailer on the bottom. 🙂

    We embrace slow travel, as you know. After six months in Colombia, our visas will expire, so we have to move on to the next country, Ecuador. When we didn’t have campers and traveled with our dogs, we’d always stay in Motel 6. The only dog-friendly hotel that doesn’t charge extra. Plus, we’re always on a budget.

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    • Motel 6s aren’t too bad as lodging goes, too many of them ae in lousy area of town, though, and/or very noisy at night. You embrace the slow travel life, Liesbet, but you live on the road so you have no choice 😉 We had a great time but we were happy to be home for a while.

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  20. What a great trip, Terri! I love seeing snow as long as the roads are fit for driving, even though I’ve had LOTS of experience with snowy a/o icy roads before moving to Arizona. 🙂 I really enjoyed the quotes and the “Dumb and Dumber” one made me laugh out loud.

    I grew up taking family road trips and still love taking them today. We started both our girls on them early in their lives which was lots of fun but it’s also fun traveling with just the two of us or just me. I like slow travel too, although when going to some destinations where we’ll stay for several or more days, we do one or two very long days to spend the extra day in one spot. We’ll do this on our trip to Philly via Naperville, Illinois, and Akron, Ohio, where we’ll enjoy time with friends and family (also family in Philly.) Looking forward to it and as it will be in May and considering where we’ll be, snow shouldn’t be on the agenda. 🙂

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    • Thanks, Janet, for being a part of the Arizona leg of the trip! There was a couple times driving on I-15 in Las Vegas, the 4-inch travel seemed real 😉 I also grew up taking camping/road trips. My brother and his wife with their 5 adopted girls–it’s the only way they can afford to all go. But they love it likely because we road-tripped growing up. Let’s hope those roads are kind to you on your next adventure, Janet!

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  23. Phew Terri – no way I would even ATTEMPT such a trip, especially with winter weather along the way. Kudos to you and hubby for this one! You looked lovely walking into the wedding and I laughed at the motorcycle image – hopefully they didn’t actually ride that way as her dress would DEFINITELY have gotten stuck in the wheels or gears!!! Happy Sunday to you – glad you’re back safe and sound!

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    • Thank you, Tina! The wedding was beautiful and I’m finally going to share some of the photographer’s images this Wednesday! No, they brought the bike along for photo ops. Anthony loves to ride and he traded in his smaller bike for the one you see which has a special back with storage and grab handles so Lauren can ride easily. I knew when he did that he was committed to marrying her! We are happy to be home although 84F this whole weekend was a bit of a slap, oh well!

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  25. Such a grand trip! No doubt you were happy to see spring emerging at home, perfect timing. road trips truly are the adventure along the way. Powerful image of the LDS temple. And the road around Mt. Helix was colorful and a bit daunting from that angle. You sure covering a lot of miles and did a lot of site seeing. Welcome Home.

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    • Thank you so much, Donna! I thought of you when we were at Horseshoe Bend. I was happy with some of my “from the car window” pics, trust me that I threw out a LOT. We had a great time. One big trip like this a year is good enough. We love being home (still feels like I’m on vacation somewhere), but there may be two shorter camping trips before September!

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  26. Hello Terri. I loved reading about your travels and seeing your photos. It’s always fun hearing about people’s experiences in my home state of Utah. That last bit in the snow does not look fun at all. I’m glad you made it home safely and were greeted by spring flowers. There’s no place like home.

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    • Many thanks, Cheryl! Yes, you do a wonderful job sharing your trips with the commentary and images you provide! I was so happy that Brodie was such a good dog. We got so many compliments on his quiet behavior. He’s matured a lot since the crazy hotel stay in 2019 🙂

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  28. What a great road trip! I love all your photos from the road and of the road! Though I may have been less happy to encounter so much snow on route, it’s still so beautiful! We will be on a short road trip ourselves this week, so I may be back later with more on that. 🙂

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  33. What a great road trip Terri and full of useful info and superb photos. I was surprised with the amount of snow about but loved the scenic backdrop it provided. You certainly had a great trip but I do understand the feeling of wanting to kiss the ground when you got home. Spring must be getting underway by now (I hope)! Your quotes were all very applicable. I certainly learnt a lot from your post and enjoyed the drive with you all! Thanks again for the opportunity to join in with Sunday Stills and it’s great to have your post for WBOYC 🙂

    My post is here –

    Hodophile: a lover of roads (and travel) #SundayStills

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    • Thanks a million, Debbie! We didn’t think there was going to be so much snow overall, but as you said, it made for beautiful photos. I meant to comment on yours that the hodo in hodophile reminds me of the hoodoos in Bryce Canyon. Hmm… Always glad to connect with your features, this lent itself well with the timing of the trip and all my pieces of notepaper (and I even made a binder, LOL) and calculating mileage, etc. I got free state road maps from Triple AAA in case google maps didn’t work (and it happens occasionally).

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  35. What a road trip this was Terri. As if you did not have enough snow all Winter (and I believe you said you had your first snowfall in November) and here you were dealing with it again. You got some picturesque shots, even behind the snow plow. I liked all the quotes and I must say Brodie looks no worse for having traveled all those miles as he smiles with Hans. Lucky dog and it beats doggie day care. Ready for your next trip?

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      • The best weather was your daughter’s wedding day – you lucked out there. Have fun doing that planning Terri. When I used to travel with a tour group for an annual trip, I’d start planning right away to avoid that letdown you get after a long-awaited trip is over too quickly.

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  36. Terri, I can’t say enough about this post! Wow. I love how you focused on the roads because it felt like I was on the trip with you, and I could feel the anxious moments going through fog or wet or icy roads. The one behind the snow plow looked particularly nerve-wracking and then topped with a nail in the side. That’s the end of that tire’s road, right?

    Now for look #2, my favorite pics: Aero, of course, the drive through Hell’s Canyon, the views through Salt Lake City. There’s a name for churches set against a mountain background. I just read a blog with a photo like that in Europe. I also loved the black and white of Hans and Brodie. That picture has so much personality it jumps from the page even if you don’t know who’s in the picture – even more special when you do! And finally, your welcoming home shots of the buds. The sunflower is so unique.

    Great wedding photos, of course. I love Lauren’s jacket. I can’t imagine getting on a motorcycle in my beautiful white wedding dress, let alone taking off! That’s where the irony better stop! LOL Great photo of you doing what you do so well!

    I almost forgot your backlit picture. That is so cool. Vince loves park benches. He’s going to have to see this one!

    I’m inspired for my Wednesday post “Growing.” TTYS

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    • Thank you so much, Marsha! This post took a while to write but I really enjoyed going through my pics and remembering what we did and saw each day. I wanted to stay chronological to some degree for the calendar feature which helped frame my ideas. I was really surprised how many good shots I caught from the road. I used my camera and my phone and got lucky countless times. Isn’t that the cutest pic of Hans and Brodie? They were messing around on the bed and I happened to click and decided it looked best in B&W. I wish I had taken more pics of Montana and Beaver. I feel as we neared the end of the trip my brain was tired and my creativity waned. BTW, most of the wedding shots are by the professional photographer. I watermarked them with his logo. Luckily Lauren really didn’t ride the bike, mostly it was staged. Thank you again, my friend! I’m excited about next week’s prompt of churches and temples. I have other pics of churches in my archives, so it will be varied. Already planning LOL! Talk soon!

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  37. Reading your post both makes me smile, and at the same time miss those days when I was traveling with my dogs. I stayed at Best Western hotels many times, due to the reasons you mentioned, they are great! Your most recent road trip seem marvellous.

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  38. Hi Terri, you got some great shots during your road trip. A very inspired and inspiring post. I would not have got on a motor cycle in my dress. All that grease! Your weather looked very misty on the way back. I don’t like driving in mist which is rare here.

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  39. Thanks for the whirlwind tour in a 10-minute read, Terri. So much crammed into this post.
    Seeing the winter photos tells me how long spring has taken to arrive this year fully. We had to turn the heating back on yesterday, and it’s only another eight weeks until the longest day! However, I still prefer driving in the cold to the heat.

    The backdrop of the snowy mountains is beautiful. And it sounds like you did a lot of research on where to stay before setting off. Good for you. Brodie looks like he had a great time too. I love how you said you could have kissed the ground when arriving home. There’s nothing quite like our creature comforts.

    And those photos of the highways remind me of how amazing we thought they were when we first drove them. They stretch for miles with no bends (unlike the motorways in the UK).

    Did you share the driving with Hans? Are you both good passengers? I only ask as I can’t drive when John is in the car. He’s far too nervous!

    Here’s my entry.

    I think this path leads to another dimension. It has that feel about it. If I had not been alone, I’d have tried walking down it to see which year I’d have ended up in.

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    • Thank you for reading my high mileage post, Hugh. Like our trip, the more I wrote the more I kept writing 😉 I enjoyed the trip planning but we did need to get home by the 14th at the latest to finalize filing our income taxes! It was in the hands of our tax accountant and he still needed our signatures.

      Hans probably drove more than me, but I seemed to catch the NASCAR speedway run when it was my turn. One forgets how to drive in 80-mph traffic and tailgaters! Hans also wanted to drive in the new areas so I could use the lenses to capture sights along the way…wasn’t that nice? Most highways were in great condition considering the long winter in the West.
      Now that is a cool image you shared, Hugh. What struck me is the way the road is clearly marked for pedestrians and for bicycles. Most of ours are free-for-alls, but we drive on the right of the roads here and as well as cycle.
      Thanks again for wading through this post. I don’t usually add so much content but now I’m done and can share a few more highlights 😀

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      • Your posts are always worth a read, whatever the length, Terri. And posts like this deserve more than a ‘great post’ type of comment (but you know my feelings on those comments).

        Ahh, yes, the tax man. They have the power, don’t they? Thank goodness John does mine all online. They usually owe me a small amount, so I never complain.

        The image I included is a footpath. It used to be much broader, and a land train ran up and down it every summer. The land train still runs, but not down this path anymore. As well as cyclists and pedestrians, it’s usually now also used by skateboarders and electric scooters. Poor Austin is terrified of both.

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      • We had to pay a little this year and get that check in the mail, Hugh. It was just so nice to get home and not see any snow, like our backyard grew so much bigger. Have a great day and hope you are getting some spring sunshine 🌞

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  43. That’s a LOT of miles and tons of sights! Late snow seems to be the theme this year! Glad you made it everywhere safely and that Brodie traveled well. Love all your photos and quotes. Bernie

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  47. Right? It’s not just the destination, but the journey too. Just wow on those photos you captured Terri, especially the Utah ones. Glad you ‘stopped to smell the roses’ along the way. ❤

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  48. Terri, road trips are the best, and I love how you are sharing this one in pieces. We have never traveled with a pet, so I especially appreciate the extra level of planning that goes into selecting accommodations. Driving in cold, snowy weather is also not something we’ve done a lot of. Not sure if two Florida flatlanders are equipped with the nerves to handle that. The scenery is beautiful though. That snowplow photo is epic. Whoa! Love the photo of your daughter and her husband on the bike. They will look back at that one day and say ‘yep, that was us.’ My favorite quote is ‘look through the windshield and not the rearview mirror.’ Ahead is always the best path…..

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    • Thank you so much, Susanne! That last day was the worst of any snow on ground, kind of like a “welcome back, your trip is over!” With all the travel by RV you do I’m sure your snow driving chops are able to handle anything! Im so happy my daughter and her hubby are happy. They love their motorcycle trips!

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  53. A fabulous trip – but not entirely safe I understand. Welcome back to spring! Love the many exciting views from your roadtrip, and the motorbike photo is really great. Congrats to your daughter’s wedding!

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  59. Terri,
    Thanks for the tip on traveling with a dog. We just adopted one, and he’s only traveled by RV so far. Good to know about BW. We came home from California earlier in April and did our best to stay ahead of the storm on our tail the entire way from Vegas to Tennessee. I posted a recap of the trip today and added a link below. Great pictures–I love the shot of the Tetons! Have a great week! Joe
    https://www.easingalong.com/fun/april-and-a-few-loose-ends

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    • Thank you Debra! Seemed like a good time of year to take the long road trip, but La Nina had other ideas for the weather, LOL! The whole West had had a long, drawn-out winter this year, and now it’s summerlike in late April, early May!

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    • Thank you, Susan. It wasn’t too difficult to include Brodie. He was a good dog everywhere we went. My daughter insisted he not come to the wedding, so he stayed at my brother’s place with his dogs 🐾

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  63. I love a US road trip so I really enjoyed this summary of yours. I’m amazed at how many miles you drive in a day. By my calculations you average 500, whereas we think 200 is a long day! But I guess we’re there to see the sights, not get from A to B 🙂 The snow on the mountains looks beautiful but I also love that road near Lake Powell!
    I’ve sneaked a few paths into my Lens Artists post for you, so a bit of double-dipping this week: https://www.toonsarah-travels.blog/gallery-backlighting-to-add-drama-and-atmosphere/

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    • We got used to driving 500 miles in a day when we drove to San Diego 2x a year from Sacramento. This trip we hurried to get there but the return trip was fewer miles. We enjoy driving so higher miles aren’t a big deal. Glad you double dipped, Sarah! I’ll check it out soon!

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